New traffic violations law to take effect August 1 in ND

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – Starting Tuesday, North Dakota will start reporting all traffic violations to insurance companies.

Violations that are three points or more are currently the only ones sent to your insurance company when they request your driving record.

Starting August 1, if you get a ticket for any reason, your insurance company will hear about it.

“It means drivers will be paying more attention to how they are driving and being more responsible on the roadway,” said Sgt. Wade Kadrmas, safety and education officer for the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread says our state is the only one that hasn’t reported every single violation.

“There has actually been cases in North Dakota where somebody has had a clean driving record for their insurance purposes, so all those minor violations are not on there, but have actually had their license suspended through the DOT because they have racked up so many points of those smaller traffic violations,” said Jon Godfread, commissioner of the North Dakota Insurance Department.

The North Dakota Highway Patrol says this will now cover many traffic violations including speeding.

“That would be certain speeding violations if you are over the speed limit by a certain number. Those types of violations would get reported,” said Kadrmas.

The insurance commissioner says this could mean higher rates for drivers. The new law will help insurance companies to get a better idea of the risk a driver poses.

“People may see an increase in rates if you are a poorer driver. If you have had a large number of speeding tickets or a lot of those small minor traffic violations. For the most part, we are hoping this will lead to stable rates,” said Godfread.

In order to avoid an increase in your car insurance, Kadrmas said to “be responsible, do your job as a driver. Pay attention to the roads, obey all the traffic signs and obey all the speed limits.”

NDHP hopes that the change will incentivize good driving.

The current law has been on the books since the 1970s.

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